Innholdsfortegnelse for 2023-03-09 i Pretoria News

THE MARKETS yesterday cold-shouldered the phase 2 guidance note of helium producer Renergen as it signalled it was considering a potential international public offering (IPO) as well as taking on billions of rand in debt to finance construction. By the close of the JSE yesterday the shares in Renergen, which owns one of the richest and largest helium reserves, the Virginia Gas Project (VGP), had tumbled 4.07% to R19.18 after it had put out a phase 2 guidance note. The guidance comes hot on the heels of an announcement on Tuesday that the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) had purchased a 5.118% stake in the firm. Renergen said yesterday that it had successfully produced both liquefied natural gas and liquid helium from the phase 1 pilot plant in the VGP. The…

AMID concerns over increased delistings from Africa’s biggest stock exchange, JSE – which reported rich cash pickings for the year to the end of December – is on a solid financial footing, with earnings picking up in an environment that is worrying investors over political risks and currency devaluation. As many as 25 companies delisted from the JSE in 2021 while a further 22 firms left Africa’s largest bourse in 2022. This has raised concerns among the South African investor community, with others making a stronger case for offshore investments. “Let’s settle the offshore/onshore debate once and for all. R1 000 invested each into S&P500 and JSE Alsi (All Share Index) on January 1, 1980, I would today have R143 000 in the JSE and R740 000 in…

A panic attack is a quick period of anxiety accompanied by a heightened physiological reaction to a threat or danger, real or imagined. Certain physical and psycho-logical symptoms result from this rapid wave of extreme dread or worry. They frequently reach their maximal intensity in a few minutes. The signs of a panic attack might be a direct reaction to something frightful or upsetting, but they can also occur for no apparent cause. It’s understandable that people could feel overpowered and afraid due to the abruptness and lack of control. “Panic attacks may only happen once for many people. Some could experience them frequently. This typically takes place in the setting of a mental health problem like panic disorder,” according to Dr Christine Marie Tomcheck, a psychiatrist who practises in…

DESPITE his failure to lay criminal charges against former Eskom CEO Andre De Ruyter, South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi still believes there is hope of accountability. Saftu gave De Ruyter seven days to lay criminal charges against the two ministers he mentioned in his viral interview with television journalist Annika Larsen, where he boldly claimed that the politicians meddled in the running of the power utility. Vavi said that De Ruyter missed the deadline they set for him, therefore forcing his trade union to approach a police station in line with the Prevention of Corruption and Corrupt Activities Act, which states that anyone in authority who is aware of illicit affairs involving more than R100 000 should report the matter to the Hawks. The…

More than four months of consecutive load shedding have taken their toll on almost every area of our lives, and even driving has become a more perilous task as major intersections are left without robots for many hours. At many intersections untrained pointsmen such as street vendors and car guards have stepped in to help, but the AA warns that this could bring certain dangers and legal ramifications. “While the intention is noble, and in many cases traffic does flow, it only takes one serious crash to realise the folly of this endeavour. And, because the ‘pointsmen’ are not legally authorised to perform this duty, there is no legal recourse should something go wrong,” the association said. It said motorists had no choice but to comply with the directions given…

I was getting ready to pen a self-righteous-sounding piece about how those who criticise the Toyota GR86 for being too slow don’t understand what it’s really about. I was about to launch into a long tangent about how its performance deficit is far outweighed by its perfectly balanced rear-wheel drive chassis, which delivers sublime roadholding and the ability to oversteer. Did I mention it can drift like a boss? The gist was going to be that you don’t need to go fast to have a really good time behind the wheel, when you’re driving a car that was designed from the ground up for pure steering pleasure. Sinking behind the wheel and driving it for a few kilometres, rowing my way through its slick-shifting, close-ratio six-speed manual gearbox, only cemented…

First Day, Second Test, Stumps South Africa: 311/7 (Markram 96, De Zorzi 85, Motie 3/75) PRIOR to this series against the West Indies, the Proteas had not passed 300 in 16 Test innings. They have now achieved it twice in successive first innings, but yet there still remains an itchy feeling that they have let the opposition off the hook. These are the standards that this new Proteas Test side wants to judge themselves on after closing Day 1 of this second Test at the Wanderers on 311/7. “On both occasions we got over 300, we’ve started well, and that’s thanks to Dean (Elgar) and Aiden (Markram) who have negotiated the new ball. That makes a big difference to the rest of the batting line-up,” said Tony de Zorzi, who…

ERNST Middendorp left the Swallows nest suddenly following a string of poor results since joining the Dube Birds. There were clear signs of frustration in recent times which would have led to him taking up an appointment in his native country, Germany. Here are five indicators that he had been ready to jump ship: 1. A week ago Swallows were beaten 4-1 by the Buccaneers at the Dobsonville Stadium. At the post-match interview Middendorp said he was not afraid to be sacked in light of the defeat. He added that if the Swallows chairman was not happy with the results, he should decide [to fire the coach]. Under Middendorp Swallows collected 11 points in 10 league games: three wins, five defeats and two draws. 2. Middendorp’s frustration also surfaced when…

ROYAL Bafokeng Platinum (RBPlat) CEO Steve Phiri said, as he released the firm’s financial results or the year ended December 31, 2022, that the risk of doing business in South Africa had increased significantly. “In 2022, the unreliability of electricity supply impacted our production and consequently increased our unit costs, which were also affected by an increase in our overall mining inflation of 10.3%. “Our costs will be further impacted by the recently approved 18.65% increase in the electricity tariff,” he said. Production of 4E – platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold – decreased by 3.9% to 449 000 ounces. And as metal prices weakened and operational challenges prevailed, BPlat reported a 46.3% drop in annual headline earnings in 2022 to R3.48 billion, down from R6.48bn the prior year.…

THE GENDER pay gap in the South African technology sector continues to widen as it increased to 13.2%, up from 6.4% last year among entry-level developers and widened from 16.3% to 25.7% at senior level, according to the 2023 State of the South Africa Software Developer Nation report released this week. This data report on developer career trends in South Africa, and the fourth annual report of its kind was released by OfferZen. It is based on a survey of motre than 4 500 developers. OfferZen’s CEO and co-founder, Phil Joubert, encouraged HR and People team leads to consider the nuance behind the data. “It’s easy to reduce the data to a headline, but there are multiple factors at play here. This includes the fact that male developers…

THE BOARD of insurer Momentum Metropolitan Holdings – which lifted earnings in the interim period to December 31 – has approved a further R500 million share buy-back scheme, which is due to commence shortly. The new share buy-back is in addition to another scheme that saw the company mop up R750m, or 3%, worth of its own shares during the half year period to December, the company said yesterday. “In consideration of the strong capital and liquidity position, the board has approved a further R500m for the repurchase of the group’s ordinary shares. These repurchases will commence following the release of the interim financial results,” Momentum Metropolitan said yesterday. While the 2022 share repurchases were undertaken at a consideration price of R16.74 a share, the company’s stock closed 1.18%…

An uneasy calm has fallen over two of the province’s biggest institutions of higher learning, Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) and Wits University, as management teams scramble to restore calm and order. The students have embarked on protests in recent days, disrupting academic activities at both institutions. As of Tuesday, academic activities had to be suspended and staff turned away at TUT’s Pretoria West Campus after students embarked on protests. They are unhappy with a number of issues they claimed were being ignored by the university management. Student Representative Council (SRC) member Musa Maringa said student formations had submitted numerous memorandums to university management since the beginning of the year, alerting them to a number of issues. Maringa said students couldn’t be expected to write tests while registrations were still…

Addressing the media, Cele said although they may be working at a slower pace than expected by the nation, they would crack the case. He mentioned that there is progress after collecting cellphones. “Fortunately, I get briefed every day about this matter. It is a matter that we can’t get to rest. And unfortunately, we can’t give a blow-by-blow of what is happening, but the progress is absolutely there. “We have collected a lot of cellphones that were working to download all kinds of things. That was the last I received. The progress is there … we are cracking the case,” said Cele. This news came after the hashtag #JusticeforAKA had been trending for weeks, many fans demanding justice. A petition calling for justice for the slain rapper has also…

COPE has been left red-faced after one of its members, Dr Murunwa Makwarela, who had recently been elected as executive mayor of Tshwane, was disqualified as a councillor after it emerged that he was declared insolvent by a court in 2016. “We were caught by surprise when we were confronted by the media with news that (Dr Makwarela) was disqualified by the municipal manager because he was sequestrated some few years ago and that it is unlawful for any public representative to occupy such an office,” said national spokesperson Dennis Bloem. Bloem said the Cope national leadership was not aware of Makwarela’s circumstances, even though there was a vetting process for candidates. “We were not aware of this serious violation of the law. In all fairness and honesty, during…

There are days when the smell from the sewerage drains get so unbearable that she can’t even go outside for fresh air. So says Lindiwe Nkosi, a Winterveldt resident, who is forced to endure a stench of sewage overflowing from a manhole in her yard. Like many other residents, Nkosi has for years been exposed to the bad odours, but her pleas to authorities for help have fallen on deaf ears. All the residents have heard are empty promises, which were often made by politicians canvassing for votes during elections. Nkosi’s life has been a living hell due to the unhealthy environment, which is always littered with faeces and wastewater. She was forced to send her two children to her grandparents’ home because one of them is asthmatic and couldn’t…

China’s JAC Group, which markets the T6, T8 and X200 bakkies in South Africa, has unveiled the world’s first electric car powered by a sodium-ion battery. But what’s the big deal here? According to the carmaker, this technology could be a game-changer for the electric vehicle (EV) industry as sodium-ion batteries are cheaper than the commonly used lithium-ion units, and potentially more sustainable as they rely on a more abundant resource. While the scarcity and cost of lithium have been a challenge to the industry, sodium-ion batteries use cheaper raw materials and have been touted as a potential alternative that could help reduce EV production costs by 10%. There are disadvantages, however, the biggest hurdle being that they have a lower energy density than lithium-ion batteries, meaning the equivalent size…

Hatchbacks, once highly sought after in many corners of the globe including South Africa, seem to be dying a slow death as buyers swarm to SUVs and crossovers. This year alone, the world has had to say goodbye to the Ford Fiesta, while the Kia Rio is also set to be axed in most markets including South Africa. It’s also rumoured that the Volkswagen Polo is set to be culled in Europe, although the current model is at least poised to remain with us beyond 2025, probably as a Vivo. However, the Hyundai brand has no plans of giving up on the hatchback market, as revealed in a recent interview with Autocar. Michael Cole, who heads Hyundai Europe, told the British publication that the company was strategising about what comes…

SA Rugby high-performance manager and former Springbok flyhalf Louis Koen will coach the Springbok Women’s side on their two-match European tour later this month. He’s been appointed on an interim basis with Junior Bok Women’s coach Laurian Johannes-Haupt, a former Springbok herself, his assistant when they take on Canada (March 25) and Spain (April 1) in Madrid. The team will also have a practice session against Wales. Johannes-Haupt is the first woman to be appointed in a senior international coaching role by SA Rugby as the governing body looks to strengthen women’s rugby in the hope of competing at more World Cup tournaments in the future. Lynne Cantwell, SA Ruby’s high-performance manager for women’s rugby said: “We have a long-term plan for growth and we are coming off the back…

THE PUBLIC Investment Corporation (PIC) this week began legal proceedings against AYO Technology Solutions to set aside its subscription agreement and recover the R4.3 billion it invested for a 29% stake in AYO when the company listed in 2017. The investment occurred through the PIC’s participating in the initial public offering by AYO through a private placement in December. AYO’s senior counsel, Nazeer Cassim, began his cross-examination of witness, Victor Seanie, a former PIC analyst and assistant portfolio manager, yesterday afternoon, showing documentation to Seanie, and saying that it could not be disputed that British Telecom South Africa (BTSA) and major client, Sasol, were supportive of AYO’s black empowerment credentials, given AYO was more than 51% black owned and 31% owned by black women, and that in fact…

AROUND the world, progress on women’s rights is vanishing before our eyes. The latest forecasts estimate that on our current track, it will take another 300 years to reach full gender equality. Today’s cascading crises, from the war in Ukraine to the climate emergency, affect women and girls first and worst. And as part of the global push back against democracy, women’s rights over their bodies and autonomy over their lives are being questioned and denied. Two statistics make our failure very clear: ■ Every ten minutes, one woman or girl is murdered by a family member or intimate partner. ■ And one woman dies every two minutes during pregnancy or childbirth. Most of those deaths are entirely preventable. On International Women’s Day, we must commit to doing better.…

Working from home became a nightmare for many of South Africa’s women academics during the first six months of the Covid-19 pandemic-enforced lockdown in 2020. That’s according to a study conducted by Dr Cyrill Walters and Prof Jonathan Jansen from Stellenbosch University, Professor Linda Ronnie from UCT, and Dr Samantha Kriger from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. The study, which surveyed more than 2 000 women in academia, was published in the peer-reviewed journal Plos One. The study found that increased workloads, domestic pressures, and inadequate workspaces turned the home into a more stressful place and left them feeling burnt-out. According to the researchers, the pandemic unsettled the meaning of “home” for women academics. “During the lockdown, home was no longer that place of refuge from the…

The Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, 63, said in a talk on stage at the 92nd Street Y in New York City on Monday that she has felt she had so little self-worth she used to buy presents for people to “over-compensate” for her fear there was no way they could feel affection for her. She said in an hour-long chat: “I’ve always managed to hide (my mental issues) very well. “People-pleasing, over-generosity, gift-giving, all that sort of stuff… (it was), ‘They can’t love me’, ‘I have no self-worth, therefore I must over-compensate’. “And it’s a thing I talk about very candidly.” Sarah spoke at the event to promote her latest romance novel, A Most Intriguing Lady, which she joked had given her dreams of playing a woman who gets…

THE Mamelodi Magistrate’s Court has released murder-accused correctional officer Thuso Phora, 32, who was arrested for allegedly killing his wife. Phora, attached to the Kgosi Mampuru II Correctional Centre in Tshwane, previously told the court that he bludgeoned his wife, police graduate Phenderia Botshelo Phora, on the head and eventually strangled her in self-defence. “Bail was set at R5 000 and on the condition that he should not have contact with his minor child unless the family court has conducted a thorough investigation and believes that the accused can have contact with the child,” said NPA Gauteng spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana. It is alleged that on January 2 Phora and his wife had an argument after she had rejected his advances for sexual intercourse, according to the NPA. “During the…

A very ill-looking Angelo Agrizzi, from his bed and with an oxygen mask over his face and a nurse by his side, yesterday virtually joined the inquiry proceedings held by the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, to establish the way forward in his corruption trial. The court, however, shortly afterwards adjourned the proceedings indefinitely, having agreed too much time had already been lost in the application. The matter was set down for three days, ending today, but it was agreed to postpone the matter to another date – yet to be decided – so it could serve before court for three consecutive days and not in a piece-meal manner. The hearing also adjourned early on Tuesday in a bid for Agrizzi to virtually join the proceedings from his home. The court…

EVEN without a Cabinet post, former minister Lindiwe Sisulu has promised to remain grounded in the fight against corruption, maladministration, and radical economic transformation. These are the views of Sisulu’s adviser, Mphumzi Mdekazi, who shared some of Sisulu’s feelings after her axing following a delayed Cabinet reshuffle by President Cyril Ramaphosa. In the Cabinet reshuffle announced by Ramaphosa on Monday, Patricia de Lille was moved from the Public Works and Infrastructure portfolio to Tourism, replacing Sisulu, who took over the position in 2021. The reshuffle was a long time coming for sacked Sisulu, who had been earmarked for the axe long before the reshuffle was on the cards. Over the past few months leading up to the reshuffle, Sisulu has, on numerous occasions, broken ranks with President Ramaphosa, and there…

Kia is getting ready to pull the covers off the production version of its EV9 and, from what we can see in newly released teaser images, it remains faithful to the identically named concept of 2021. The Kia EV9 will become the brand’s new flagship SUV when it makes its global debut at the end of March, and we’ll have to wait until then to hear all the specifics. We do know that the vehicle will be built around the Hyundai Group’s E-GMP modular platform for battery vehicles, and this will be the second Kia vehicle to utilise this architecture, after the SA-bound EV6 sports crossover. It’s not yet known whether the EV9 will be offered locally. Kia is promising a “bold” and somewhat “sculptural” exterior design, complete with striking…

Aston Martin is just getting started on a big adventure and for double world champion Fernando Alonso, back on the Formula One podium at 41 years old and in his 20th season, it seems too good to be true. The evergreen Spaniard was even talking about future wins after finishing third in Sunday’s Bahrain season- opener behind the Red Bull pairing of Max Verstappen, also a double champion, and Sergio Perez. Aston Martin, seventh in the championship last year, were suddenly second in the standings and beating both Ferrari and Mercedes. “When you are P3 in race one, there are 22 (more) opportunities this season,” Alonso said of a possible 33rd career victory. “You know, anything can happen in 22 races with different conditions. And I will try my best…

IS it better to have a mid-season break before the Rugby World Cup, or a breather just before the tournament starts? That is the conundrum facing the Springboks and the other countries who form part of the United Rugby Championship (URC) competition, compared to the French and English national sides ahead of the 2023 edition in France, which starts in September. The defending champions from Japan 2019 didn’t have much choice but to give their top players based in South Africa an extended break between February and March, which will see the 14 currently on the Springbok camp return to action on the weekend of March 24 and 25 in the URC. On that Friday night, the Stormers will be in Dublin to take on the mighty Leinster, while on…

THE Bulls have scored the third-most points in the United Rugby Championship, yet have lost their last four matches in the competition – so, what seems to be the problem with the Pretoria side? Last week’s 29-25 defeat to the Lions at Loftus probably hurt even more than the previous loss to the Stormers at the same venue. The Cape side are the defending champions who have subsequently completed the “grand slam” of beating all the South African franchises home and away this season by knocking over the Sharks 29-23 at Cape Town Stadium last weekend. In sharp contrast, the Lions have been battling on and off the field this season, and despite having beaten Glasgow Warriors the week before, they were real underdogs against the Bulls. But while Jake…

ORLANDO Pirates are not carried away by the expectations of challenging for the remaining honours, including finishing runners-up in the Premiership and winning the Nedbank Cup. Pirates started the season on a high, as they became the team to beat after winning the MTN8. But that form flattened in the league as they failed to regularly record wins, resulting in falling way behind runaway log leaders Mamelodi Sundowns in the title race. Pirates have since improved on their performances, resulting in them being one of two teams that could win a domestic double – alongside Sundowns – as they are still in the running for the Nedbank Cup. They’ll face Venda Football Academy in the last 16 on Saturday. However, that is not their only goal as they…